While Patronism is a true original and based on a great concept, the execution pales in comparison to the newest crop of fan subscription platforms.

Patronism is a crowdfunding platform based on delivering exclusive content to fans in exchange for a monthly pay-what-you-want subscription fee. The idea is exciting, but after an initial splash in the media, Patronism failed to catch on as a platform for all but a handful of musicians. This was probably due to the platform being built and managed together by a single person, rather than any problem with the idea. In fact, companies like Ziibra have taken the ball and run with it, many years after Patronism’s initial launch.

Patronism will take 15% of each subscription for providing hosting, the platform, and some basic tools to help promote your work to subscribers. The platform still works in the sense that you can sign up as an artist and offer monthly subscriptions to fans. But lacking the tools to deliver value around that subscription, it’s hard to recommend Patronism in its current form when there are more user-friendly alternatives.

We hear a new team is working on building Patronism 2.0, and are excited to see a revamped user experience. The blog has not been updated since the summer of ’13, so we’re not holding our breath.